BOSTON—Health apps still have a long way to go before achieving the goals of wellness and facilitating healthcare delivery. Issues surrounding usability, trust and convenience remain hurdles, according to speakers at the mHealth + Telehealth World 2014 on July 23.

BOSTON—“It’s a tremendously exciting time for mHealth,” said Adam Landman, MD, CMIO, health information innovation and integration at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, speaking at the mHealth + Telehealth World 2014. “It’s really fueled by amazing growth and utilization of mobile devices.”

BOSTON— “As a nonprofit, we’re incentivized to do what’s right for patients,” said William Morris, MD, vice chairman of clinical informatics at the Cleveland Clinic, speaking at the mHealth + Telehealth World 2014 on July 23.

Innovation HealthJam, an online industry collaboration event with forums and discussions that took place from June 17-19, facilitated a successful exchange of innovation, wellness and technology ideas, according to organizers. It was hosted by IBM and sponsored by vendors, industry associations and educational institutions.

Interoperability has been a key buzz word heard along the road toward modernizing the American healthcare system. But standards, conformance to those standards, and thorough testing to ensure conformance are all required to achieve true, seamless information exchange. That’s the message advocated by Mario Hyland, senior vice president and founder of AEGIS, a consulting firm focused on advancing a health IT testing infrastructure. Hyland spoke with Clinical Innovation + Technology about current interoperability and testing challenges.

When computers or data-storage media with protected personal health information on them go missing, healthcare providers don’t just face the threat of federal fines and patient class action suits. Individual states also can sue if their residents were impacted.

The Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) has joined other leading organizations, including the American Medical Association, in writing to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) to ask for even more flexibility in how eligible providers can meet Stage 2 Meaningful Use requirements for electronic health record technology under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act.

BOSTON—Patient engagement is easier said than done, and stakeholders are in ongoing pursuit of the right incentives to motivate patients to take ownership of their health.